The lioness returns
by Emjezz
Summary: Hermione spent the last four years studying in Australia. When the time comes to return to her past and face what she left behind, it is also time to show the British wizarding world that she is no longer the bushy haired know it all they all thought they knew. Can she face old friends and enemies and cope with meeting new ones? Come and find out!(Rating might change/NO Harmony)
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

Hermione, looking at her reflection in the mirror, took a deep breath.  
"You can do this Hermione. You are an absolvent of the _Australian Institute of Healing_ , you even graduated on top of your class. You are smart, independent, capable and … oh who am I kidding? They are never going to care about that! The only thing they-" - "What's _capapel_ mean Mi?" a small voice interrupter her nervous rambling. Hermione looked towards the door to her bedroom and smiled at her little brother. _Little brother_ … the words never failed to make her heart skip in joy, even after four years of being an older sister. She had always wanted to have siblings but, after years of waiting, she had never expected her parents to make her a big sister at the age of nineteen. She still remembered the day she had found out clearly.

\- _Flashback_ -

 _Hermione was straightening her blouse nervously while looking at the sign in front of her. 'Wilkins' Dental Practice' stood in black letters against a silver background. Today was the day she had been afraid of for nearly a year. She had traveled to Australia two days ago in order to find her parents, now living under the impression that they were Wendell and Monica Wilkins, and restore their memories. She didn't expect to be in Australia for more than a few days, a week at the most. She was sure that her parents would be absolutely furious with her actions. Surely, they would tell her to leave them be, at least for a few weeks or months, in order to come to term with the things she had done._

 _It had not taken her long to find her parents in New South Wales. She had managed to get a room in a small B &B and made an appointment at the Wilkins' dentist's surgery for the next afternoon. She had spent a sleepless night tossing and turning while worrying about her parents' reactions. _

_Pushing the glass door open, Hermione now slowly entered the practice to find a welcoming reception area furnished in bright, friendly colours. She walked up to the reception desk and smiled at the woman behind it nervously. "Hello! I have an appointment for 3pm?" The woman gave her a beaming smile. "Hello. Under what name?" before Hermione could answer, the woman quickly scanned a list on the desk in front of her. "Would that be Rebecca Webber?" she asked and Hermione nodded. "Yes. That's me."_

" _I see you're here for a consultation with Dr. Wilkins about getting your wisdom teeth removed?" the receptionist enquired and Hermione quickly recalled the story she had come up with on the phone the day before. "Yes. They've been bothering me for a while now, but I have had problems with other dentists before and would like to talk to Dr. Wilkins before agreeing to the procedure. A friend told me Dr. and Dr. Wilkins are highly qualified and also friendly?" Hermione hoped that her memory charm had not influenced her parents' personality in a negative way. The receptionist reassured her immediately. "Yes! They really are wonderful people to work for." She leaned forwards and said in a smaller voice. "Some might think I'm only saying this because I work for them, but it's true. I have worked in about six different practices since I started as a secretary and the stories I could tell you…" she trailed off and rolled her eyes. "But Mr. and Mrs. Wilkins are friendly and considerate and hardworking … don't get me wrong, they are strict if they have to be but they always try to have a healthy working atmosphere." Hermione smiled at the secretary's words. That sounded just like her parents. Always trying to make everyone feel welcome and accepted while being highly respected by everyone they worked with._

 _She was brought out of her musings by the secretary's sudden exclamation. "But what am I thinking? I'm sorry madam. I am not normally this … chatty. It's just that you somewhat remind me of them." She gave Hermione another beaming smile. "Why don't you take a seat and someone will call you as soon as Dr. Wilkins is ready for you? It should not be too long since he only has one patient before you."_

 _Hermione nodded, gave her thanks and sat down on a chair in the corner of the room. So she reminded people of her parents? She felt a warmth she had not felt in years run through her. Maybe, she thought, maybe everything would be all right after all. She continued her musings until a small woman clad in white and teal opened a door next to the reception desk and called for Rebecca Webber. Hermione quickly stood up and walked through the door the dental assistant held open. The small woman showed her to a room, knocked and opened the door. When Hermione entered the room her breath hitched and tears sprang into her eyes. Her father was sitting behind a large desk that was filled with books and papers. He got up and smiled at her apologetically._

 _Leaning over the desk, he held out his hand for her to shake. "Hello Miss Webber, I'm Dr. Wilkins. I apologize for the state of my desk but I'm currently knee deep in research." He tried to shove various papers together but failed miserably when a large stack of them fell to the floor. Hermione rushed to help him and could not stop the soft giggle at her fathers' actions. It seemed like he had not changed … at all. While she had gotten her need for order and structure from her mother, she had clearly gotten her obsession with knowledge from her father. Her father thanked her for her help and while apologizing again, put the papers back on the desk. After offering her to take a seat, he himself sat down behind his desk._

" _Miss Webber. You have come for a consultation on the removal of wisdom teeth?" Hermione nodded in agreement. She had spent the entire morning thinking of how and when she should restore her fathers' memories. She was reluctant to simply whip out her wand and point it at his face, but if she didn't come up with something soon, that was exactly what she would have to do._

" _Have you had other consultations before or how do you know that your wisdom teeth need to be removed?" her father required and Hermione paled. 'Yes Hermione, how do you know that they need to be removed?' she thought bitterly. 'Stupid!' She looked at her father whose face was lined with confusion at her reaction. "Are you all right Miss?" he asked with concern. Hermione let her wand slip from the holder on her forearm and into her hand. She did not see any other way. "I'm sorry." she whispered before pointing the wand at her father's face._


	2. Chapter 2

Previously:

" _Are you all right Miss?" he asked with concern. Hermione let her wand slip from the holder on her forearm and into her hand. She did not see any other way. "I'm sorry." she whispered before pointing the wand at her father's face._

* * *

 **Chapter 2**

 _Hermione watched her father's face closely for any change. She had been so sure that she could do it, but … THERE! Ever so slowly, signs of recognition appeared on her father's face. She watched him shake his head before he finally looked at her. "Her-Hermione?" he stuttered disbelievingly. She could only nod hesitantly before her father exclaimed in joy, quickly stood up to round his desk and pull his daughter into the tightest hug she had ever received. Tears in his eyes her father, now again as David Granger, eventually pulled back and, without letting go of his daughter, asked her what had happened._

 _Hermione, knowing that she would have to repeat the story in front of her mother later, only gave him an explanation for her actions that was much too short for his taste, but enough for the time being. She was now looking at her father with fear written all over her face._

" _Hermione, …" he sighed before once again pulling her tightly into his arms. "I know what you're thinking but you're wrong!" Hermione rose her head from where it was buried in her father's shoulder and looked up at him. "I am?" she asked hesitantly. "Of course you are! You're thinking that I am furious with you and that your mother and I will want nothing to do with you, don't you?"_

 _Hermione nodded. "How could you think that? You're my only daughter! My poppet. I could never be that angry with you and neither could your mother. Least of all for something like this. Am I sad that you felt like you could not talk to us about all the problems you had and the danger you were probably in? Of course I am. We have always talked about everything that was going on in your life, at least as much as you were allowed to tell us. I also know that your decision was probably for the best. You know your old man. I would have never let you leave us had I known what danger you were going to be in. Notwithstanding the fact that I would have done the same thing, had I been in your shoes, I would have done everything in my power to keep my only daughter from fighting in a war!"_

" _So you're not angry?" Hermione asked to reassure herself. "Of course I'm not!" her father answered while rubbing his hand down her back in order to calm her down. "Quite the opposite actually, I'm proud of you! You have only given me a glimpse of what you've been through in the last year but I already know one thing for sure. You were brave and strong and smart and self-sacrificing and those things are reason enough for any half decent father to be proud of their daughter!"_

 _Hermione let out a relieved sob and buried her face back into her father's shoulder. After a year, well seven years if she was honest, of constant pressure and fear, she finally felt like she was able to let go. Her father forgave her and he had assured her that her mother would do the same. She was finally safe again. Her family was. She listened to the soft, murmured words of her father and slowly calmed down._

" _Are you feeling better now poppet?" David Granger asked and Hermione laughed. "I should be asking you that very same question dad! I'm not the one that has to come to terms with two sets of memories." Her further chuckled. "Well what can I say? It takes more than that to bring down the great David Granger … conqueror of the monsters that once lived under the bed of Lady Hermione Granger!" "How could I forget about that?" Hermione laughed and carefully extracted herself from her father's arms._

" _So…where is mum? Can I talk to her soon?" she frowned at the hesitant look in her father's eyes. "Poppet, there is something you need to know before I take you to your mother." Hermione immediately began to worry. "Why? What's wrong?" Surely, her father would have told her if something had happened to his wife straight away. But he had taken his time to calm her down. That had to mean something, right? Before she could work herself up even more, her father spoke up in a calm voice. "No Hermione. Don't worry. There is nothing wrong with your mother. Trust me. I would not be working here if something bad was."_

 _He looked at his only daughter for a moment before a beaming smile spread over his face. "Poppet your mother is not working at the moment. She …" he hesitated for a moment before continuing. "She's pregnant."_

 _Hermione looked at her father in shock. Pregnant? Her mother? She had always wished for a younger brother or sister and envied Ginny and Ron for their big family but she had never expected for it to happen this … late. She quickly calculated the months she had been on the run and assuming that her mother had not been pregnant when her memories had been changed, she would become a big sister at nineteen!_

 _After the first shock wore off, she was overjoyed. Finally, she would get to be the big sister she had always wanted to be. She quickly threw her arms around her father's tall frame and bombarded him with questions. "Really? How is she? How far along is she? Is she okay? Why is she no longer working? Is the baby okay? Do you know what it is yet? When is she-" Her father laughed and interrupted her by gently putting his hand over her mouth in order to stop her._

" _Hermione, slow down! One question after another. Yes, she really is pregnant and she is okay as is the baby. She stopped working about a month ago because her blood pressure was too high but as long as she takes things slow everything is going to be all right. Your mother can tell you about the rest, we wouldn't want her to get angry with me for sharing every piece of news without her now, would we?" Hermione shook her head, well aware of the fact that her tendency to … have a temper was not a habit she shared with her father._

" _Speaking of your mother being pregnant poppet" David started again "there is something I'm slightly worried about. Maybe there is something you and your Magic can do about it?" Hermione looked at him, now curious. "Considering that your mother is pregnant and that her blood pressure is already too high, I do not want her to have a negative reaction – health wise – to having her memories restored."_

 _Hermione nodded in understanding. "I have a calming draught in my handbag that is safe for pregnant women to take." She gestured towards the small bad that lay on the seat of the chair she had vacated before. "We could put a few drops into her drink and I could restore the memories right after that." Her father nodded shortly. "Are you certain that there are no side effects? That it will not harm her or the baby?" Hermione nodded again. "Yes. I thoroughly studied everything about the potion before making it the first time." She grinned sheepishly at her father's hearty laughter. Like father like daughter._

" _All right." Her father agreed. "How about I tell my secretary to cancel all appointments left for today and all those I would have tomorrow. Then we can take my car to see your mother. Do you have any luggage left at a hotel or somewhere else to go before we see your mother? I don't think she will want you to leave after she knows what has happened."_

 _Hermione shook her head and explained to her father about the charms on her handbag. He quickly managed to set his affairs in order and showed her to his car that was standing in the parking lot behind the practice. Hermione's eyebrows rose. "A van dad?" David nodded with a grimace. "Yes, your mother convinced me to get one when the old one broke down two months ago. Said it would be more sensible than what we had before, now that we're expecting."_

 _Hermione bit on her lip to stop herself from smiling. Her father had always had a thing for cars. But while her parents had always had enough money for him to get any car he wanted, they chose to live without any big investments. Yes, they had always taken her on a holiday every year when she was a child and she had never wanted for anything, but her parents had also never spoiled her, always trying to teach her that there were things in life that were more important than money._

 _Hermione sat down in the passenger seat of her parents new car and watched the scenery of Cronulla, where her parents now lived. Five minutes later, they parked in front of a mid-sized two-story house with white shutters. There was a short footway from the garage to the front door which was lined with two boxwoods. She had to smile at the obvious sign of her mother's taste._

 _Hermione and her father had agreed that he would introduce her as a friend's relative that was interested in becoming a dentist and wanted to talk to them about what to expect. Therefore, she slowly got out of the car and followed her father to the front door._

 _She watched with bated breath as her father unlocked the door and stepped aside to allow her to enter. She took a deep breath and stepped through the entrance of the house her parents had lived in for nearly a year. She turned to look back at her father but a familiar voice from the next room stopped her in her tracks._

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A/N: Before you ask, no I won't always be able to post another chapter this quickly. I did it this time because the words we practically flowing out of my mouth and because I feel like I have to ask for something I HATE asking for:  
Please tell me what you think (yes...the bad word: reviews)! I don't like asking for this but how else am I going to know if you like the story and if I should continue posting chapters?  
I don't like always reviewing either, but please...take a few seconds of your time!

Thank you, Emjezz

P.s.: Obviously not J.K. Rowling *facepalm*


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